Until this point we've been creating our opacity mask in a very specific way.…We've been taking artwork and then we take some other kind of vector shape, be…it a circle with a Gaussian blur or maybe a rectangle that has a gradient…applied to it, and we've been using that vector shape as an opacity mask.…However, it's important to realize again that an opacity mask is simply using…the different gray levels to create the mask itself.…So we're not limited to actually using vector shapes for masks. We can actually…use an image as an opacity mask.…

In that case, the image or I should say the pixels inside of that image…determine the visibility of the artwork that appears beneath it.…Now in the past we've taken for example an image and put a vector shape on top…of it so when we make an opacity mask the top object becomes the mask, but if…we reverse the order and we put the image on top and the vectors on bottom,…then it's the image that becomes the opacity mask for the vector beneath it.…Let's actually apply that here in this case, because many times you know…

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Released

5/10/2011

In this installment of Illustrator Insider Training, Mordy Golding shows experienced Illustrator users how to create transparency effects and ensure reliable printing results. This course reviews the history of vector transparency and covers features such as knockout groups, opacity masks, and transparency flattening. Mordy also shows how to establish a safe workflow when placing Illustrator graphics containing transparency in PostScript, PDF, and InDesign files. A free worksheet is included with the course.